Timing Attacks - EXF-0002.04

Execution time varies with inputs and branches; precise measurement turns that variance into information. The attacker times acknowledgments, response latencies, or framing gaps to learn which code paths ran (e.g., MAC verified vs. failed, table entry present vs. absent) and to infer bits of secrets in timing-sensitive routines such as cryptographic checks. On resource-constrained processors and deterministic RTOSes, small differences persist across runs, making remote timing feasible over RF if clocks and propagation are accounted for. Combined with chosen inputs and statistics, these measurements leak internal state faster than brute-force cryptanalysis.